ACID
by Ryuuza
Summary: The Annual Celebration of Immortal Demons will be plagued this year by Eclipse and RaenefV looking for some time alone, Chris and Erutis finding out why mortals shouldn't attend, and Krayon wishing...for the undead?
1. Prologue

_Author's Note:_ A fic, a fic!   Wow.  One that might actually have a plot… Even bigger wow!

_Warning:_ Yaoi (male/male), plot-ness, fluff, weirdness…

_Disclaimer:_ I don't own Demon Diary.  Well, actually…I do own the books that I bought but I don't have any share in the royalties.  Does this seem unfair to you? *sniffle*

**A.C.I.D.******

**by**** Ryuuza**

_Prologue_

It dawned a beautiful morning in the demon world.  Tints of violet and rose kissed the brightening sky as the golden rays of the sun emerged to embrace the land.  The air was cool and crisp, bringing reminders of the approaching autumn.  The trees stood tall and leafy, green in defiance of the cooling temperatures.  The birds—well, the birds would have been chirping merrily except that they had suffered the misfortune of irritating Eclipse with their incessant noise the day before and had become the subject of an efficient Death Drill much to the horror of one traumatized demon lord.  So today there was no heralding of the dawn, merry or otherwise.  Still, the day with the knowing winks of the last fading stars promised to bring a surprise.

And so it did.

"A demon _what_?" chorused Erutis, red-headed knight and swordsman (er, make that swords_woman_) extraordinaire, and Chris, cleric.

["Successor to the High Cleric of the Holy Temple of Rased!" shouted Chris, shaking his fist angrily.

Bah…too long.]

"A demon crematory," the terrible Demon Lord Raenef the Fifth repeated.  He blinked his wide green eyes artlessly.  "That's what Eclipse said!"  He looked defensively across the table at his mortal friends and wondered why they were sweatdropping.  A sigh from the black-haired demon to his right drew his attention away.  "Right?" Raenef asked Eclipse hopefully.

"A demon cemetery," Eclipse gently corrected his liege.

Erutis slumped back in her chair.  "So they don't burn dead demons," she muttered to herself, "they just bury them.  Gee…so much better."

"Ghost!" Chris yelled very suddenly.

"AAAAAAGGGHHH!  Where?!"  Erutis fell off her chair.  By the time she'd untangled herself from the heap of limbs she'd created on the ground and straightened, she had very pointedly familiarized herself with the truth.  Raenef decided that he was glad he wasn't Chris.  Besides not being with Eclipse, he'd also have to be on the receiving end of Erutis's current may-your-mother-weep-for-you-because-I'm-going-to-skin-you-alive-and-feed-your-miserable-guts-to-poisonous-maggots glare.  Raenef swallowed.

["Wow," Erutis said admiringly.  "My glares are real eloquent, aren't they?"]

The ensuing chase, capture, and beating proceeded on for a good ten minutes before Erutis, hair tousled and sitting on Chris's back (who was facedown on the ground), glanced back at the dining table where Eclipse and his lord were continuing their breakfast and asked, "Er—why are you going to a demon cemetery?"

"A ceremonial extravaganza to honor the achievements of all demons and commemorate the greatest of those who have passed away."

"What?"  Raenef blinked.

Chris wriggled beneath Erutis, seeking to sneak out from under her.[1] "A party," he grunted.

The blonde demon lord's eyes lit up.  "Ooh!  Really?  A party—how fun!"  Flowers popped into the air beside his sunny expression.

Eclipse sighed.  "Yes.  I suppose you could call it that."  He batted the blooms away from Raenef but a few petals dropped onto his plate, decorating the food.  He sighed and brushed them off.  A smile tugged at the corner of his lips as a bright-eyed Raenef turned on him.

"So are we going, Eclipse?" he asked eagerly, puppy dog eyes in full force.  "Can we go to the party?  Pleeaaase?

"Yes, we're going," he replied, trying to school his features back into his usual impassiveness.  He cast a look at the pair brushing themselves off (Erutis had finally decided that Chris had been punished enough and had allowed him to get up) and let himself smirk . "By the way, attendance is limited to demons only."

"WHAAAAAAAT?!"

Ah, the sound of horrified screams.  This was familiar.  This was how a demon lord's castle _should_ sound like.  Eclipse had to suppress a sigh of pleasure.

It might even make up for the hell he'd go through at the Annual Celebration of Immortal Demons (aka ACID).  He sighed in shame at the name.  Demons were feared.  [Well, most demons.  He cast a despairing look at the bubbly demon lord beside him, happily arranging the food on his plate in the shape of a smiley face.]  Therefore demons did not need to come up with creative, more frightening names for their rituals.  Though "The Blood Sacrifice of the Moon Shadow's Eve" had a nice ring to it.  No one would have guessed that it meant a free-for-all night of BDSM the night before a solar eclipse.  Heh.  So demons were wanton creatures of both pleasure and pain.  Not particularly world-shattering, that revelation.

Eclipse collected his wandering thoughts.  Gah.  Those idiots were rubbing of on him.  He smirked.  And there was only one idiot he wanted to rub off on him and … he trailed off.

--

Krayon, as the fifth eldest demon lord in existence [2] ("Damn, he sighed, "I'm feeling my age again.  Where's my beauty cream?"), had quite a share of the responsibilities for ensuring the success of ACID.  However, he was currently—ah, taking a momentary respite, because demon lords did not slack off.

But he was _tired,_ okay?  Spending three hours trying to wheedle out of Meruhasae any and all information on Raenef IV did that do a person—and a demon lord too.  The Seer was inordinately stubborn and vicious with that fan of hers to boot.  Krayon conceded that irking her was perhaps not the best way to glean the information he desired.  Nor was annoying her or whining at her or ordering her in his most superior I-am-a-terrible-and-mighty-but-very-pretty-demon-lord-fear-my-wrath-vermin voice.  He rubbed idly at the bruise forming on his shoulder.  It'd go nicely for sure with the other sets on his arm, thigh, and backside.  Great.  He'd have to wear long sleeves to the celebration.  How depressing.

The thought of the celebration gave him pause.  He leaned back against the tree trunk, sitting comfortably on an outstretched limb, and contemplated the papery whisper of its green leaves.  Spring green leaves…the color of his eyes.  Krayon sighed and twirled a lock of golden brown hair.  Raenef's eyes.

So he missed his lover.  A demon lord was allowed to do that, wasn't he?  [Krayon wasn't sure.  He'd have to check his rulebook again.]  He brought a finger to his lips and tapped the nail against his lip.  ACID was an overly lavish extravaganza the demons put on every year (hence, the "annual" part) to give due where it was due and have an excuse to get mind-blowingly drunk.  All the demons and demon lords who had passed through existence and left a significant mark (the Sphinx's nose would never be the same) and those who were still alive were honored in the celebration.  But what made Krayon's heart ache was that Lord Raenef IV would be one of those demons that had "passed through existence" to be honored this year.

Would that he was still alive, demon lord of Egae thought wistfully.

Damn.  Demons weren't supposed to be sentimental, were they?

But besides missing his lover, Krayon had an unsettling feeling that all was not as it should be.  He wasn't going to go as far as to say Raenef wasn't _dead_, but there was just…something…that made everything seem wrong.  Which was the reason behind his impromptu Spanish inquisition of Meruhasae and the ensuing beating.  Krayon tilted his head back and watched the sunlight filter through the leaves.  Lovely late summer day, he thought.  How absolutely miserable.  Why couldn't it be cloudy?

Cloudy days were always more suitable to dark magic.  And may have lent Krayon a better hint as to what was bothering him. The ominous messages of thunderclouds sent frissons of invisible magic skittering through the air, which all demons (but demon lords especially) were attuned to.  He may have been able to learn something useful.  But alas, the day was unbearably sunny and cloud-free.

Krayon considered getting out the tree and actually attending to his duties to ACID.  He decided braiding his hair was a better use of his time.

--

Violet orbs bobbed gently in the breeze, sending a warm glow into the room.  Meruhasae rested at her open window, peering out over the dark forests that surrounded her home.  In those very forests, foreboding to all mortals and thereby effectively preventing their unwelcome presence, the 3513th annual ACID would be in preparation.  The fifth eldest demon lord in existence would be among the ranks sent to see to the preliminary details.

The Seer brought her closed fan up to her lips, her silver eyes shadowed, at the thought of Krayon.  He was more perceptive than the average demon, which was to be expected, as he was a demon lord, but he had an intuition that far surpassed the standards of even demon lords.  Only Seers had a finer sixth sense, and this particular Seer was worried.

Krayon was right.  There _was_ something unsettling around the circumstances of Raenef IV's death.  She'd seen…she'd seen things she didn't understand.  And a part of her was afraid to.

What disturbed Meruhasae the most, as she stepped back and swept the billowing violet curtains across the open window, was the fact that she'd seen a future.  A possible future, out of the endless possible futures, that included another war she'd gladly give her powers to never see.  And in the murky corners of this vision, she'd seen a visage that greatly reminded her of the late Raenef.

--

The unlate Raenef, who was very much alive and tried to be as prompt as he could, was tugging at Eclipse's robes.  "When're we going to the demon cre—cemetery?" he asked curiously, now tugging at Eclipse's hair.  He scrambled all over his tutor's lap, looking for something else to tug on and distract the other demon from his lesson book.  "Can we go soon?  I like parties!"

Eclipse smiled down at the blonde terror that was squirming in his lap.  [Really, this was becoming unacceptable.  Demon lords were not allowed to smile nearly as much as he was beginning to find himself doing so lately.]  He ran his long fingers through Raenef's ponytail—it was growing longer, much to his delight.  "We shall leave tomorrow at daybreak."

Raenef paused in his assault on Eclipse's neck.  "Yay!" he cried happily, licking his lips.  He loved the way Eclipse tasted.  The little demon lord fastened his mouth on the pale skin below his tutor's jaw again when—his head popped back up.  "_Daybreak?_" he exclaimed in dreadful tones, his summer green eyes wide.  "But that's so _early_!"  He pouted.  "What if I'm sleeping?"

A small, smug smile—no, no, let's call it a smirk—settled on Eclipse's face.  His garnet eyes narrowed lazily at his liege, who had reattached his lips to Eclipse's skin, and murmured, "I doubt you will be, my lord."

But a fleeting thought crossed his mind before he let himself be distracted from the day's lessons at Raenef's all too enthusiastic urging… It had begun raining outside, pitter pattering gently along the castle rooftop, not yet having roiled itself into a storm.  As the young demon lord slid his arms around Eclipse's neck and brought their mouths into full contact, Eclipse remembered that the previous Raenef had died in the rain.

Cursed by heaven's creatures, doomed by time, and fallen in Eclipse's arms.

But then he buried those memories in the heat of an eager, willing mouth.

"Raenef…"

--

Erutis and Chris stood in an empty hallway doing nothing more than looking at each other, gazes intense.  The air was charged and it was silent, except for the sound of the rain.  Eclipse and Raenef were in the library for lessons and the arguments of knight and cleric had ceased for the moment.  Pale gray sunlight filtered through rain clouds and stone pillars to illuminate the castle in a soft glow.

There was still silence.

Finally:

"So we're agreed.  We're going to sneak into that demon cemetery celebration."

Chris stared at her.  "Is that what we were doing?" he wanted to know, looking bemused.  "I was staring at the zit on your nose."

[The following scene has been edited out to maintain the rating.  Just know that it was violent and painful and not the fun way either.  Poor, poor Chris.]

"Ahem," Erutis finally said, using the wall to wipe a smear of blood off her finger.  She straightened her clothes and glared down at the whimpering cleric sprawled on the ground.  "We'll be going with Rae and Eclipse tomorrow," she stated, no questions about it.  Then she paused.  Lifting her sword, she examined it, bent down, and wiped it clean with Chris's tunic.  "And you better be ready."

::tbc::

[1] you know Erutis would never let him be top…

[2] they keep saying "one of the fifth eldest demons lords" ne?  well, if he were the fourth or third eldest, they'd say "one of the fourth/third eldest demon lords" so he _must_ be the fifth eldest.

_More notes:_ Er…notations.  Yes.  Review!  And just to be nice, I shall tell you that I would _never_ write an EclipsexRaenef4 fic.  If it eases your mind any… Review!!  Review!!! 


	2. One

_Author's Note:_ Yes, chapter one, at last. *streamers* This chapter continues in a more serious vein than the previous, but there will still be humor, I promise!  The plot just calls for a little more sobriety.

-I have read DD6.  And while I simply melted at the EAR5 fluff, I found that I was upset with Rae4.  The put it mildly.  So this is what we're going to do: we're going to pretend that everything that happened after evil!Rae changed back to kawaii!Rae in DD5 didn't happen.  Denial is a wonderful place to live. *nods wisely* I will incorporate some things that happened, maybe, but my way.  ^^. Any complaints?  Well, leave them in a review then!

-Thanks to everyone for correcting the 3513th thing, I just saw it ending in 3 and …uh, yeah… ^^;; It's all fixed now.

-Special thanks to Nightengale13 for beta-ing. *gives her a life-size poster of all violet-eyed bishi*  Wow, I wish I had one… Still a favorite person!!!

_Warning:_ Yaoi (male/male), plot-ness, fluff, weirdness…

_Disclaimer:_ This is fanfiction.  Fan (as it written by a fan – ta da, me!) and fiction (as it, it's not real).  So let's just go with the assumption that I don't own DD, okay?

**A.C.I.D.******

**by**** Ryuuza**

_Chapter 1_

Winter was generally the preferred season of demon lords.  Ice storms were lovely tools of destruction and most the world associated the season with death anyway, what with the lack of, well, life in the nature around them.  And for the few demons that were more partial to summer, their reasons were justified, for summer heralded violent storms that the demon world reveled in.  Krayon, however, had always loved autumn and its slow, inevitable onslaught of death and cool, crisp air that would blow silky black hair into verdant eyes…

So autumn had always been Raenef's favorite season too.  And maybe Krayon was biased.

He closed his eyes and buried himself deeper into his bed, the silk sheets cool against his skin.  The drapes kept out the majority of the morning sunlight, and in the shadows of his canopied bed, Krayon remembered the gentle touches and warm breath that used to accompany his daily awakenings.

A sense of loss so deep it struck him speechless assailed him, and he bit his lip at the pain.  It'd been a year, a year and a half, since his lover had died.  Tears seeped through his lashes as he remembered days when he hadn't been able to imagine a life without his Raenef, without the teasing and scheming and loving… When he thought they'd have a couple of thousands of years together, at the very least, during which he couldn't have pictured himself ever leaving the younger demon lord for other lovers, as Raenef had sometimes worried.

_How I miss you Rae…_

It was so hard to go about his normal activities lately, his casual death and destruction, when every fiber of him yearned to be where his lover was.  It didn't matter where, watched over by vicious storms or blanketed by blue skies, wherever, he didn't care, as long as there would be slender arms wrapped fiercely around him, and a heart beating in sync with his.

He just wanted Raenef.

But… Krayon turned, bringing his arm over his head and dragging the sheets along, burrowing further into the depths of his bed and hoping fruitlessly that he wouldn't have to face the day.  But, deep down, he knew he couldn't escape another day without his Raenef.

A tear tracked down his cheek.

Mornings were the worst, when his memories and yearnings were especially vivid and the loss nipped at his heart sharpest.  He bit his lip.  It was…improper…this longing, this sentimentality.  Demon lords shouldn't suffer these kinds of thoughts.  The rulebook was absolutely clear on that (though most demons generally accepted sentimentality when it came to devious, torturous subjects).  Still, Krayon couldn't help himself.  Raenef had ingrained himself too deeply within this demon lord's heart.

His breath hitched.

Maybe he would work on the ACID preparations today, he thought.  The work might distract him.  Hopefully.

Krayon shuddered and his longing conjuring up a ghost of a whisper along his neck, trailing along collarbone and coming to a rest over his heart.  And within that heart beat a strong, steady, desperate wish.

_Raenef…_

-x-

"It's still raining," Meruhesae observed to Eclipse.  She snapped her fan closed and turned from her window to her cozy boudoir, eyeing the two demons nestled on her couch.  "It's a good thing you got here before nightfall."

Eclipse inclined his head in agreement but refrained from speaking.  He had an arm wrapped around his sleeping liege, Raenef tucked close to him, and looked tired.  It had been a long trip from Raenef's realm to Aureleid's (where ACID was being held) for teleporting could only take place within a demon lord's own realm.  Meruhesae regarded them with a considering expression, her thoughts plentiful but private.

"Perhaps it would be best if you and your lord retired for the night," she finally said.   Gliding past Eclipse, she swept aside a sheer drape and glanced at the pair over her shoulder.  "Follow me and I shall show you to your rooms."

Eclipse scooped up the little blonde demon lord in his arms and trailed after the female Seer.  She led him to a room of soft peach and ivory with a large bed dominating the space and heavy velvet curtains hung before the windows.  A circle of shallow steps led up to the bed and Eclipse ascended these to gently place Raenef in the sea of fluffy peach.  Meruhesae observed them from the doorway, shadows playing across her face as her ever-present fan gently stroked the chilly night air.

Turning back toward Meruhesae, Eclipse trained solemn garnet eyes on her.  "Thank you for your hospitality," he intoned coolly.  [Demons do have manners, you know, but only to other demons.  (Who needs mortals, right?)  Remember how Eclipse bowed to Raenef and kissed his hand?  Aww… Eclipse isn't nearly as pleased about having to be nice to Meruhesae though…]

"Shall I receive any reward for all I have done for you?" the demon asked him, her face creasing into an impish smile.  Her eyes twinkled mischievously.  "I never did receive a proper reward for my previous services, Eclipse."

A keen observer may have observed a faint flush on Eclipse's cheeks.  "I shall see that you are compensated fully for your assistance," he said stiffly.

Meruhesae laughed at him.  "I think I know better than to ask for a kiss this time."  Her gaze slid fleetingly to the bundle of golden hair and pale skin and white robes snoring contentedly in the middle of the bed.  "I'll settle for your lyre."

"I wasn't aware I had a lyre," he replied, deadpan.  "Perhaps I should consider purchasing you a new fan."  Her current one fluttered near her collarbone.

She smiled beatifically at him, though the glint in her eyes was slightly more devious.  "I shouldn't think to allow such a high-ranking demon to purchase a gift, nay, a reward.  If you won't give me your lyre, Eclipse, which I know perfectly well you play to lull Raenef V to sleep, I'd be happy to take that cleric boy of yours off your hands."

Eclipse raised an eyebrow as he settled himself on the edge of the bed, lifting his   hands to undo the tie that bound his hair.  "You need a new mannequin, do you?"

Meruhesae looked mildly annoyed.  "Honestly, don't give me that kind of look.  Have you ever tried making Krayon's clothes without a proper model?" [1]

"Isn't the cleric quite a bit smaller than our venerated Demon Lord of Egae?"

"Don't worry," the Seer said dismissively.  "Krayon wears clothes two sizes to small for him anyway."

"I see…"  The skeptical tone was accompanied by a slight smirk that was hid by the waves of silky black locks that spilled across his face.  Only Meruhesae would dare say something as impudent as that.

At the pointed look she was receiving from Eclipse [Every demon should master a look with points.  Arrows were good, spears and lances also.  But needle-point worked best, for all its pinpricks were sharp, clean, and painful.]  Meruhesae sighed and swept her fan closed.  She gently rubbed her shoulder.  "Do let up, Eclipse, I'll leave you to your liege.  Continue on with whatever naughty things you do at home."  Eclipse glared, she smirked.  Then, sobering, she added, "I do request to speak to you tomorrow.  It's…about ACID…your former master…the future."  There was an unfamiliar shadow of worry on her features.

He nodded.  "I will see you at dawn."

She arched a brow.  "Raenef might not appreciate being abandoned so quickly after.  I'll see you after breakfast."  With a wink, she made a quick exit before Eclipse could throw anything at her, as he looked tempted to do.

-x-

"We are so lost," grumbled Chris, picking a twig and a leaf out of his hair.  "This is all your fault."

"Excuse me?"  Erutis stopped, hands on her hips, and glared at the cleric.  "Just because I am tougher than you and don't mind roughing it out through this dark, scary forest because I trust my instincts that we're on a shortcut does _not_ mean you get to complain!"

Chris gaped at her, coming to a standstill in the dark forest as rain drizzled down on them.  Then, in a higher octave than normal, he yelped, with an accompaniment of rapidly waving arms, "Complain?  _Complain_?  You think that was complaining?  Let me show you complaining.  You _lost_ Eclipse and Raenef while we were following them, you have no idea where we're going, dark, scary forests are _never_ shortcuts, at least never shortcuts you can see the other side of, we are only toughing it out in this stupid forest because _you got us lost_, and I'm hungry, tired, wet, and you didn't bring an umbrella!  Umbrellas may not yet have been invented!  I am a supergenius and you can't treat me like this and I'm talking in a voice higher than yours!  I think I'm at least entitled to being upset and definitely to _complain_."

Erutis blinked.  Chris stopped and gasped for breath.  "Are you done?" she asked irritably.

"Uh, yeah," he said hoarsely.

"Good.  Let's continue."  The knight swung her sword briskly and tromped forward into dark and wet shapes that looked the same in all directions.

Chris heaved a sigh and, with shoulders slumped, followed.  Who would've figured he'd be stumbling around in a strange demon lord's realm in the middle of the night behind a clearly insane swordswoman?  Supergeniuses weren't made for this kind of exercise.  Lunatic women.  He glared into the darkness and kicked the ground angrily…and tripped.

_Argh_.

Picking himself up and wiping the mud off his face, he continued shuffling forward.  That stupid demon ceremony thing had better be worth it.  Otherwise, when he found a dry bush to crawl under, see if he would share with that deranged madwoman!  Hmph. 

-x-

_"Ow, dammit, Rae, what're you doing?"_

_"Just checking."__  Green eyes blinked innocently at him, offset by a deviously smiling mouth.  "I just wanted to make sure that your hair was attached."_

_Krayon had a hand protectively placed at the base of his skull, where the victimized lock of hair originated.  He rubbed it gently and gave his lover an annoyed look.  "Why wouldn't my hair be attached?" he grumbled.  "It's not like I wear a wig."_

_Slender arms wound around his waist and Raenef looked sheepishly at him.  "I had this dream, y'see…" He snuggled closer, drawn to the warmth by the other demon lord in the cool morning air.  Silk sheets were prone to catch the chill in the air and Raenef preferred the heat of his lover.  "I was just checking," he reiterated._

_"Liar," Krayon accused sorely.  He lay on his back, gaze drifting over the patterns in the ceiling as Raenef pillowed his head on his shoulder.  "You just wanted to wake me up."_

_"Well…you did."_

_"You're such a child, mate."_

_"Well, that makes you a pedophile."  Raenef arched a brow, a smug look on his face, his fingers tangling themselves in the other demon's hair._

_Krayon groaned.  "Don't remind me."  He turned on his side and received an affectionate nip on his jaw for the effort.  Levering himself off the bed, he propped himself up on his elbows as he looked down at his companion.  The fourth Demon Lord Raenef was sprawled lazily under the sheets, his pale skin stark against the crimson silk, ebony black hair spilling like ink against the pillow, long spiky lashes at half mast over sleepily come-hither verdant eyes, and a slight pout that was the result of Krayon's perusal.  Raenef tugged on his lover. _

_"Come back," he coaxed._

_Willingly, Krayon slid back into his embrace.  "Let's go terrorize people's dreams today."_

_A pause.__  "And you think I'm childish."_

_"Are you mocking me?  I'll have you know I'm due for a lot more respect than you give me, mate."  He nipped an earlobe.  "Insubordinate fool.  I happen to be very adept at creating nightmares, thank you."_

_"You've had the practice, you old hag, you."_

_A sharp twist of a nipple in retaliation.__  "I'm still prettier than you."_

_"I have better hair."  A gasp._

_"Better skin." _

_"More energy."__  A twist of the hips._

_"More experience."_

_"More endurance."__  Wandering fingers.  Labored breathing._

_"More creativity."__  A lick along exposed skin._

_"Stronger magic."___

_"More magic."__  A moan._

_"Prettier servant."___

_Krayon had to pause there.  "Okay," he conceded, thinking of his own demon servant, who was far from ugly, but definitely not as beautiful as the renowned Eclipse.  He dropped a quick kiss on Raenef's lips.  "Best lover."_

_Raenef smiled at him.  "Mine's better."  He rolled Krayon onto his back and straddled the demon lord of Egae.  "Love you," he whispered._

_Krayon didn't get to terrorize dreams until much later that morning._

-x-

Four and a half hours of sleep, Raenef V thought as he yawned behind his hand, was not nearly enough.  The rest of the night had been spent very pleasurably, to be certain, but still, he was tired.  Strenuous exercise did that.  He winced a little as he strode down the unfamiliar corridors toward what he hoped was Meruhesae's breakfast room.  He was a little sore too, because, well, you know.  But it was a very happy kind of sore.  He nodded decisively.  If sores could be happy.

He hoped they weren't sad, in any case…

Raenef rubbed the sleep from his eyes, blinking at the bright morning sunlight.  The clouds that had brought the rain of the previous two days had rolled past in the night and the sun seemed to be gloating at its triumph.  _Ha ha_, it said (or so Raenef thought), _I win!_

Still, Raenef was pretty sure it'd be cloudy and miserable for the celebration.  Not even the weather dared to defy the wishes of a couple hundred demon lords and even more demons.  They were scary sometimes.

Although Eclipse could be very hot when he was scary.  Raenef licked his lips.  Mmm… He turned left into another hallway and noticed with interest the portraits hanging on the wall.  A few were demon lords he recognized as important and well-respected (read: old) from his induction ceremony a year and a half ago, but most were unknown to him.  They all seemed properly dark and menacing however, glowering impressively from their post on the walls.  _Eclipse should be up there_, Raenef thought.  But no, he'd prefer the real Eclipse, and not in Meruhesae's palace, no thank you.  Raenef wanted Eclipse with him, always.  And Eclipse seemed just as willing to fulfill that desire.

Warm, fuzzy feelings sprouted wings in Raenef's chest.

"Ha," Raenef gloated out the window to the sun.  "I win!"  Then he stopped as a portrait caught his attention.  His eyes widened and little fish marched in a row above his head.

"…What is _that_?!" he exclaimed, agape.

"That," came an amused voice behind him, Meruhesae sweeping into the corridor, dress rustling and fan dangling limply from one hand, "is the Great, Dark, and Scary Third Demon Lord Krayon of Egae…in a dress."

::tbc::

[1] Yes, I know, Seers generally don't have other jobs, like being seamstresses.  However, Meruhesae is a special case, Krayon is her friend, and she likes dressing him up.  So she helps make his (rather questionable) clothes. ^_~.  Don't know about you, but I certainly like his style.  But then, I'm biased.

_More notes:_ Er yes…weird, isn't it?  Don't worry, the rest of the plot is coming along…I think.  Hmm… Any suggestions?  And, someone talk to me about Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles, onegai shimasu.  Has anyone heard of it?  New by CLAMP © 2003.  I've read the first one in Chinese!!  Lovely AU crossover. ^^.  And Juvenile Orion is pretty!!! *heart*


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